Emily Zuzik - age + alchemy EP (2025) Hi-Res

Well, it can’t be said that some of the younger artists recording today independently haven’t learned their blues, alt-country & thrill of rocking out on an opening tune. But Los Angeles-based Emily Zuzik certainly didn’t miss any classes in this genre. No.

From the ass-boogieing “Easy,” to the more beautifully woven & subtle “Between Midnight & Memphis,” Emily coaxes the bluesy resources of her fine Tracy Nelson-Bonnie Raitt-Bonnie Bramlett voicings into warm steam tonality. The exceptional 6-song EP age & alchemy is all worth it just to hear how she concludes “Between Midnight & Memphis.”

Her sound is atmospheric, & though it’s not moody, each song has its mood temperature. The more noirish “The Case For Slowing Down” is a sensuous blues — a somewhat sibilant voice with vaporous guitar notes. Good arrangement too & application with significance. Emily doesn’t sing this as much as act it out like an actress. She’s performing a part & it’s like a part in a dramatic musical. An aside, like when Bessie Smith sang “St. Louis Blues” in an old 1929 film clip.
A John Lennon cover, “I’m Losing You,” is convincing as a slow blues-easy listening jazzier take. This is how a cover of a major artist’s song should be – different from the original, if not equally effective & compelling. Oh, Lennon would’ve loved this.

Emily is 7 LPs deep with this set produced by Emily & Ted Russell Kamp (bass/acoustic guitar/Hammond organ). She digs deep when vocally & sounds like someone a musician would take joy in playing with. Ms. Zuzik does display at times a Lucinda Williams persuasive vocalizing charm (but not as raw).

She’s warmer on “Taking a Walk” as her voice swaggers into a Norah Jones/Madeleine Peyroux puree. Emily could go from cocktail lounge to juke joint in a finger snap. Diversity is the key for a well-rounded entertainer & Emily fits the bill. Her material is sophisticated, contemplative, with just the right amount of exuberance & soulfulness.

A masterful deep pool of notes spills from Art Hays’ sax that rips through the excellent “Love’s About To Take a Fall.” It has all the muscle needed to support Emily’s Karen Lawrence-like ecstatic range (former vocalist with 1994 & Blue By Nature on tunes like “Once Again,” especially the finale & “Bring It Home”). Karen’s pipes were other-worldly & Emily’s voice at times…has that special uh…let me think now…alchemy.